Apache Nitrogen Products Inc., St. David, Ariz., will pay $1.5 million as part of a settlement with the federal government over safety and reporting violations linked to two releases of ammonia gas, according to Bloomberg Law, citing an Oct. 28 lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court of the District of Arizona. The company is accused of violating the Clean Air Act, the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act, and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act.
The federal government said the company was offloading ammonia from a rail car at its facility in Arizona when a sight glass on some piping broke, causing the release of 52,000 pounds of anhydrous ammonia in 2014. The release injured 12 Apache employees and one contractor. Another release of between 168 and 1,150 pounds of ammonia occurred in 2015 that caused an evacuation of some employees, the lawsuit said.
The government said Apache waited at least three hours before notifying the National Response Center, the State Emergency Response Commission, or the Local Emergency Planning Committee, according to the complaint. This delay violated the CERCLA and EPCRA, which require “immediate” notification.
Apache failed to comply with its risk management plan, which required documents showing compliance with good engineering practices for the use of sight glass assemblies, appropriate labeling of piping, and adequate protection for pipes, the lawsuit said.
The company also failed to maintain a safe facility by allowing the unsafe design or maintenance of equipment in its liquid ammonium nitrate unit, according to the complaint.
As part of the proposed settlement filed on Oct. 28, Apache will install emergency shutoff valves on vapor lines at rail car and truck offloading areas. The company will also train employees to ask Cochise County, Ariz., to send an alert to cellphones when the release of anhydrous ammonia may reach the public in concentrations of 35 parts per million or greater, according to the filing.
Apache had not responded to a request for comment by press time.